Whether you’re self-employed, a sole proprietor, or an employee responsible for filing your taxes, you’ll find that various forms require you to input a business activity code. IRS Business Codes are based on the North American Industry Classification System (NAICS). They’re also called principal business codes and can be found in Schedule C instructions for sole proprietorships, single-member LLCs, and other tax forms.
Businesses typically receive one of three business activity codes, each of which describes the primary activities of a company. The first two digits classify a business in broad terms, such as manufacturing or arts and entertainment; the third digit places the business in a subsector within its economic category; and the fourth narrows the field further, denoting the industry group.
Choosing the right business activity code is important for the following reasons: It will help you identify your specific industry and the major consumer market for your products or services. It will also help you file your taxes more accurately, which can reduce your tax burden or your chances of being audited by the IRS.
How Do I Find A Business Activity Code for My Company?
Choosing the right business activity code is important for the following reasons: It will help you identify your specific industry and the major consumer market for your products or services. It will also help you file your taxes more accurately, which can reduce your tax burden or your chances of being audited by the IRS. There are many different ways to find a business activity code for your company, but the most common way is to use the North American Industry Classification System or NAICS. This system is a set of codes that describe industries in the United States, Canada, and Mexico.
These codes are based on industry-specific groups and can be divided into over 317 distinct categories. The best way to identify the industry group for your business is to determine which of these 317 types most accurately reflects the primary activities of your company. Here is the list of Business Activity Codes provided by the IRS:
AGRICULTURE, FORESTRY, HUNTING, AND FISHING
- 110000 Agriculture, forestry, hunting, and fishing
- 111000 Crop production
MINING
- 211110 Oil and gas extraction
- 211120 Crude petroleum extraction
- 211130 Natural gas extraction
- 212000 Mining (except oil and gas)
UTILITIES
- 221000 Utilities
CONSTRUCTION
- 230000 Construction
- 236000 Construction of buildings
MANUFACTURING
- 310000 Manufacturing
- 323100 Printing and related support activities
- 339110 Medical equipment and supplies manufacturing
WHOLESALE TRADE
- 423000 Merchant wholesalers, durable goods
- 424000 Merchant wholesalers, nondurable goods
RETAIL TRADE
- 441100 Automobile dealers
- 442000 Furniture and home furnishings stores
- 444100 Building materials and supplies dealers
- 445100 Grocery stores
- 445200 Specialty food stores
- 446110 Pharmacies and drug stores
- 446199 All other health and personal care stores
- 448000 Clothing and clothing accessories stores
- 451110 Sporting goods stores
- 451211 Book stores
- 452000 General merchandise stores
- 453000 Miscellaneous store retailers
- 453220 Gift, novelty, and souvenir stores
- 453310 Used merchandise stores
- 454110 Electronic shopping and mail-order houses
TRANSPORTATION AND WAREHOUSING
- 480000 Transportation
- 485000 Transit and ground passenger transportation
- 493000 Warehousing and storage
INFORMATION
- 511110 Newspaper publishers (except Internet)
- 511120 Periodical publishers (except Internet)
- 511130 Book publishers (except Internet)
- 511140 Directory and mailing list publishers
- 511190 Other publishers (except Internet)
- 512000 Motion picture and sound recording industries
- 515100 Radio and television broadcasting
- 517000 Telecommunications
- 519100 Other information services
- 519130 Internet Publishing and Broadcast
DATA PROCESSING SERVICES
- 518210 Data Processing, Hosting, and Related Services
FINANCE AND INSURANCE
- 522100 Depository credit intermediation
- 522200 Nondepository credit intermediation
- 522110 Credit card issuing
- 522220 Sales Financing
- 522291 Consumer lending
- 522292 Real estate credit
- 522298 Other nondepository credit intermediation
- 523000 Securities, commodity contracts, and other financial investments and related activities
- 523920 Portfolio management
- 523930 Investment advice
- 524113 Direct life insurance carriers
- 524114 Direct health and medical insurance carriers
- 524126 Direct property and casualty insurance carriers
- 524130 Reinsurance carriers
- 524292 Third-party administration of insurance and pension funds
- 524298 All other insurance-related activities
- 525100 Insurance and employee benefit funds
- 525920 Trusts, estates, and agency accounts
- 525990 Other Financial vehicles (including mortgage REITs)
REAL ESTATE AND RENTAL LEASING
- 531110 Lessors of residential buildings and dwellings (including equity REITs)
- 531120 Lessors of nonresidential buildings
- 531190 Lessors of other real estate property
- 531310 Real estate property managers
- 531390 Other activities related to real estate
- 532000 Rental and leasing services
- 532420 Office machinery and equipment rental and leasing
PROFESSIONAL, SCIENTIFIC, AND TECHNICAL SERVICES
- 541100 Legal services
- 541990 Consumer credit counseling services
- 541200 Accounting, tax preparation, bookkeeping, and payroll services
- 541300 Architectural, engineering, and related services
- 541380 Testing laboratories
- 541511 Custom computer programming services
- 541519 Other computer-related services
- 541610 Management consulting services
- 541700 Scientific research and development services
- 541800 Advertising and related services
- 541860 Direct mail advertising
- 541900 Other professional, scientific, and technical services
- MANAGEMENT OF COMPANIES AND ENTERPRISES
- 551111 Offices of bank holding companies
- 551112 Offices of other holding companies
ADMINISTRATIVE AND SUPPORT SERVICES
- 561000 Administrative and support services
- 561300 Employment services
- 561439 Other business service centers
- 561499 All other business support services
- 561500 Travel arrangement and reservation services
- 561520 Tour operators
- 561700 Services to buildings and dwellings
WASTE MANAGEMENT AND REMEDIATION SERVICES
- 562000 Waste management and remediation services
EDUCATIONAL SERVICES
- 611420 Computer training
- 611430 Professional and management development training
- 611600 Other schools and instruction (other than elementary and secondary schools or colleges and universities, which should select a code to describe their unrelated activities)
- 611710 Educational support services
HEALTHCARE AND SOCIAL ASSISTANCE
- 621110 Offices of physicians
- 621300 Offices of other health practitioners
- 621400 Outpatient care centers
- 621500 Medical and diagnostic laboratories
- 621610 Home healthcare services
- 621910 Ambulance services
- 621990 All other ambulatory health care services
- 623000 Nursing and residential care facilities
- 623990 Other residential care facilities
- 624100 Individual and family services
- 624110 Community centers youth Adoption agencies
- 624200 Community food and housing, and emergency and other relief services
- 624210 Meal delivery programs, Soup kitchens, or Food banks
- 624310 Vocational rehabilitation services
- 624410 Child day care services
ARTS, ENTERTAINMENT, AND RECREATION
- 711110 Theater companies and dinner theaters
- 711120 Dance companies
- 711130 Musical groups and artists
- 711190 Other performing art companies
- 711210 Spectator sports
- 711300 Promoters of performing arts, sports, and similar events
- 713110 Amusement and theme parks
- 713200 Gambling industries
- 713910 Golf courses and country clubs
- 713940 Fitness and recreational sports centers
- 713990 All other amusement and recreation industries
ACCOMMODATION AND FOOD SERVICES
- 721000 Accommodation
- 721110 Hotels and motels
- 721210 RV parks and recreational camps
- 721310 Rooming and boarding houses, dormitories, and workers’ camps
- 722320 Caterers
- 722440 Drinking places
- 722511 Full-service restaurants
- 722513 Limited-service restaurants
- 722514 Cafeterias and buffets
- 722515 Snack and non-alcoholic beverage bars
OTHER SERVICES
- 811000 Repair and maintenance
- 812300 Drycleaning and laundry services
- 812900 Other personal services
- 812930 Parking lots and garages
OTHER
- 900001 Investment activities of section 501(c)(7), (9), or (17) organizations
- 900002 Rental of personal property
- 900003 Passive income activities with controlled organizations
